Mystic Aquarium

Yesterday we went to Mystic Aquarium with the Kapers. Here she is all dolled up and ready to go!


We kind of made a day of it, going to S&P Oyster house for lunch first. Kensie was super good while we waited for our table. She praticed cruising around in her new shoes. It is so funny to watch her walk in them... it's like she has cement blocks on her feet!

At the aquarium, Noah did a great job of entertaining Kensie... poking her in the belly and making funny noises that made her laugh!

Kensie isn't quite ready to sit on daddy's shoulders for a long time, but Noah loved it. Below is a picture of us watching the Kodiak sea lion do tricks in his habitat. We learned a lot about sea lions while we were there... on thing was how to tell the difference between a seal and a sea lion. The big difference is sea lions have long flippers that they actually use to crawl around on land and swim really fast!

Kensie was in her stroller for most of the trip, except a brief stop at the lobster tank. Mmm.... lobster. Kensie actually ate lobster for the first time at S&P. I had a lobster quiche, and I gave her a little nibble of the lobster. She ate it with no problem... she basically eats anything we give her, but it was still pretty cool to have her try it! She also had the egg part of my quiche and some bread dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Yummy!!

New milestones

Kensie is growing so fast! Lately, she has been hitting a lot of milestones... she can make a fish face, she is clapping her hands when you clap yours, she can "give five," and she can sort of tell you what she wants. For example, I was washing dishes yesterday, and she crawled into the kitchen, pulled on my leg, looked up and said "ba!" I got an empty bottle, showed it to her, and she smiled big! So, I filled it up and went into the living room and called her. She crawled to me, I picked her up, and she ate! Maybe it was wishful thinking and good timing, but I am going to count it as a big milestone for communication. She is also trying all sorts of new foods. We went to a party a few days ago and had baked beans! She LOVED them. Personally, I can't stand them, but a friend had left some on her plate and I thought, what the heck? They are little and mushy... let's give them a go. She also had some Monkey bread, which is like a donut. And when we went out to lunch yesterday, she tried french fries (dipped in guacamole - her fave). Don't worry, I'm not going to start giving her all junk food just because she likes it. It is just fun to see what she will eat!

This weekend we went to the consignment shop, because let's be honest... kids outgrow toys too quickly to get new everything! Below is a shot of her with her new activity block. No bells or whistles, because not everything should have batteries or make noises, right? Don't get me wrong, we also got her a piano that plays all kinds of music. But this activity block was just so darn cute... and she crawled right to it when we put her down in the toy section at the store. Come to think of it, that is another great reason to buy used... you can try out the toys before buying!

Down the step

Kensie just recently figured out how to crawl down a step. For the longest time she would just get to the edge and sit there. Now she can make it down! What a big girl!

Dada

Kensie really likes to say "dada." What's up with that? Where's the love for the mama?

Some recent good pics...

Walking in the grass

Kensie in the grass

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day! We took Kensie outside to give her another go at crawling in the grass. The first time we did it, a week or so ago, she was like a cat in the snow... she did all she could to keep her legs and feet from touching the grass! But, this time, she got into the idea of embracing nature pretty quickly. She better soak it up while she can, since our new yard in Chicago won't be nearly as big and green!